The present invention relates to an invention for contacting card-shaped supports of electronic components, especially of chip cards, to a connector of a computing unit such as a notebook computer, whereby the connector is preferably according to PCMCIA standard. The adaptor is comprised of a housing shaped like a computer expansion card. At one end face it has an insertion slot for receiving the card-shaped support and at the opposite end face has a plug-in contact for contacting the notebook or other computing unit. A printed circuit board is provided in the housing and is electrically connected to the plug-in contact. The printed circuit board is provided with contact elements for contacting the electronic components of the support.
In the context of further miniaturization in the area of computer technology electronic components are often arranged on card-shaped supports in order to provide for variability and transportability. Common are supports according to the so-called PCMCIA standard that refers to cards having a standardized matrix-like contact field and which can receive, depending on the application, various electronic components. Such cards are, for example, used as memory extension cards, hard drive cards, modem cards etc. The connection to a data processing unit is realized by a PCMCIA plug-in contact that effects together with a PCMCIA slot of the data processing unit a mechanical and electric contacting.
Also common are so-called chip cards which comprise an integrated circuit (IC) and have large surface contact fields for contacting respective reading units. Known applications for such chip cards are presently telephone cards, authorization cards or so-called charge cards.
Adaptor systems are also known in the prior art which allow to connect a chip card to a PCMCIA standard connector of a data processing system. For this purpose, PCMCIA cards are known which are provided with a slot for a chip card whereby in the area of the slot at the exposed surface a field of contact elements for the electronic components of the chip card are provided. By placing the chip card onto the PCMCIA card a connection of the chip card to a PCMCIA standard connector of a data processing system is thus possible. It is disadvantageous that the contact elements of the PCMCIA card, when the chip card is not present, are exposed and that due to lack of guiding of the chip card a safe contacting can not be ensured.
From German patent application 43 10 517 it is further known to enlarge the area opposite the PCMCIA contact field to such an extent that a guide slot for a chip card is formed. With this proposal, however, it is not ensured that the chip card is prevented from tilting out of the guiding plane in a lateral or an upward direction. Inasmuch as inner guide plates are suggested, it can not be prevented that the chip cards upon insertion hit these plate elements so that a safe contacting and a long service life cannot be ensured.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to improve an adaptor of the aforementioned kind such that, while avoiding the aforementioned disadvantages, a safe and secure guiding and a simple and comfortable manipulation of a card-shaped support results.